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Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-38455

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-37806 by Natalie Don-Innes on 4 June 2025, how many early learning and childcare settings have been evaluated as "adequate" by the Care Inspectorate, in each year from 2015 to 2024, also expressed as a percentage.

Question reference: S6W-38423

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what contingency plans it has in place to support local authority service delivery in the event of industrial action.

Question reference: S6W-38633

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will release its promised financial support for the Musselburgh Flood Prevention Scheme.

To date the Scottish Government has distributed £11.5 million to East Lothian Council against the council’s forecast expenditure for the Musselburgh Flood Protection Scheme. This is sufficient to fund East Lothian Council’s forecast expenditure for the financial years 2025–26, 2026–27 and part of 2027–28.

This funding has been distributed through the General Capital Grant, which means East Lothian Council has autonomy to allocate it in line with the council’s priorities.

Question reference: S6W-38643

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the age range was of people reported to police for alleged illegal use of air guns in each of the last four years, also broken down by local authority area.

The following table shows the number of crimes involving the illegal use of an air weapon, by Local Authority, split by main perpetrator age (where identified). This is sourced from the Crimes and offences involving a firearm Official Statistics, for which the latest published year is 2021-22. Future updates will follow the conclusion of a review by analysts from Scottish Government and Police Scotland into the methodology for producing this data. Unlike other crime-based official statistics, the current approach relies on the manual review of crime records to identify relevant cases, which is resource intensive and requires significant time to complete. An update on the outcome of this work is planned for early Autumn, and users can register for this through the SCOTSTAT network.

Crimes involving illegal use of an air weapon 2018-19 to 2021-22

Local Authority	Age Category	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22
Aberdeen City	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	1	0	0	0
	21 to 30	2	5	0	0
	31 to 40	0	2	0	2
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
Aberdeenshire	15 or under	1	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	1	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	1	1	1	0
Angus	15 or under	0	1	0	2
	16 to 20	1	1	0	0
	21 to 30	1	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	1	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
Argyll & Bute	15 or under	2	0	1	1
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
Clackmannanshire	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	2	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	1	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	1
Dumfries & Galloway	15 or under	3	0	0	0
	16 to 20	1	0	0	0
	21 to 30	2	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	1	1
Dundee City	15 or under	1	0	0	3
	16 to 20	1	0	0	7
	21 to 30	0	0	1	0
	31 to 40	1	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
East Ayrshire	15 or under	0	0	0	1
	16 to 20	0	0	0	1
	21 to 30	0	0	1	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
East Dunbartonshire	15 or under	0	1	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
East Lothian	15 or under	0	0	3	1
	16 to 20	0	1	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	1
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	1	0	0	0
East Renfrewshire	15 or under	0	0	0	1
	16 to 20	0	0	0	1
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
Edinburgh City	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	1	0	1	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	1	0
	41 or Over	1	0	1	0
Falkirk	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	1
	21 to 30	0	2	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	1	1	1	0
Fife	15 or under	0	0	0	1
	16 to 20	0	2	0	1
	21 to 30	7	0	1	3
	31 to 40	1	3	0	2
	41 or Over	1	0	4	2
Glasgow City	15 or under	1	3	1	2
	16 to 20	2	1	4	1
	21 to 30	5	1	5	4
	31 to 40	0	0	4	0
	41 or Over	0	2	3	2
Highland	15 or under	0	0	2	0
	16 to 20	1	0	0	1
	21 to 30	0	0	1	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	1	0	3
Inverclyde	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	2	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	1	0
Midlothian	15 or under	1	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	2	0	1
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	1
Moray	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	1	1	0	0
North Ayrshire	15 or under	0	0	1	0
	16 to 20	2	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	1	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	1	1	1
North Lanarkshire	15 or under	0	1	4	1
	16 to 20	0	0	5	3
	21 to 30	2	3	2	0
	31 to 40	0	0	1	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	1
Perth & Kinross	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	1	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	1
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
Renfrewshire	15 or under	1	0	2	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	1	1	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	2	1	0	1
Scottish Borders	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	0	0	1
	21 to 30	0	0	2	0
	31 to 40	1	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	0
South Ayrshire	15 or under	0	0	0	0
	16 to 20	0	1	0	0
	21 to 30	5	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	1	0
	41 or Over	0	0	2	0
South Lanarkshire	15 or under	0	2	0	2
	16 to 20	0	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	1	2	0
	31 to 40	2	1	1	0
	41 or Over	0	0	1	1
Stirling	15 or under	0	1	0	0
	16 to 20	0	1	0	0
	21 to 30	0	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	2	0	0
West Dunbartonshire	15 or under	0	1	0	1
	16 to 20	1	0	0	0
	21 to 30	0	1	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	1
West Lothian	15 or under	3	1	0	0
	16 to 20	0	1	2	2
	21 to 30	1	0	0	0
	31 to 40	0	0	0	0
	41 or Over	0	0	0	1
Total		62	55	71	65

Source: Recorded Crimes and Offences involving Firearms, Scotland, 2020-21 and 2021-22

Question reference: S6W-38624

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what support is being offered to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service regarding the reported 14 community fire stations across Scotland that are affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), including Hawick Fire Station.

Question reference: S6W-38622

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether its ministers have met with representatives of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to discuss the ongoing service delivery review.

Question reference: S6W-38614

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Scotland regarding increasing the number of centres that can provide CAR T-cell therapy beyond Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Scottish Government has not had discussions with Boards about expanding CAR-T cell therapy provision beyond the current centres in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Until late 2024, adult CAR-T cell therapy in Scotland was delivered through a single specialist centre. The move to a three-centre model from April 2025 reflects a clinically-led and phased approach to scaling this complex and resource-intensive treatment.

CAR T-cell therapy requires specialist facilities, accredited services, and expert clinical teams to manage serious side effects. Because only a small number of patients are eligible, concentrating treatment in a few centres helps maintain safety, quality, and clinical expertise.

It is too early to assess the need for further expansion. The impact of the current model must be fully evaluated before considering additional centres. Any future decisions will be based on clinical need, service capacity, and workforce sustainability.

Question reference: S6W-38626

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the fire and rescue coverage in rural areas, and how Scottish Fire and Rescue Service proposals would impact on rural communities.

The provision of fire and rescue activity is an operational matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).

SFRS will be consulting on a range of options for change as part of its Strategic Service Review at the end of June. As SFRS delivers its services on a national basis, some of these options for change will impact on rural areas and better aligning resources with risk and demand. As part of this consultation, SFRS will publish evidence and rational for the potential changes and it also plans to engage with MSPs and members of the public.

Question reference: S6W-38620

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the role of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in responding to non-fire related incidents, such as flooding, road traffic collisions, and medical emergencies.

The Scottish Government’s assessment of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s (SFRS) response to any incidents is informed by regular engagement (at various levels between SFRS and the Scottish Government), annual and mid-year performance reviews and HMFSI reports.

The Chief Fire Officer has provided assurances to the Scottish Government that SFRS remains ready and able to respond to all relevant non-fire related emergency incidents that may occur across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-38632

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made in developing the Musselburgh Flood Prevention Scheme.

The development and delivery of flood protection schemes is a local authority responsibility, and the Scottish Government provides funding to support them to do so.

Musselburgh Flood Protection Scheme (MFPS) was notified on 21 March 2024 as required under the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009. East Lothian Council are currently considering all the submissions made through this process, including objections, before making their preliminary decision on whether to:

confirm the proposed scheme without modification,
confirm the proposed scheme with modifications, or
reject the proposed scheme.

East Lothian Council will be able to provide further detailed information on how this process is being progressed.